I don't think bigoted squirrels are a thing and you should order this shirt!

Hey y'all, how are you doing today? This morning I burned my toe by dropping scalding hot mashed potatoes - potatoes I was preparing to eat for breakfast - on it. So, yea, I'm doing pretty great. Truthfully, I feel like I'm still spinning out a bit. Last night, as I was leaving my house to walk my dog, I was thinking to myself how great it is that our Black Lives Matter sign had been up on our lawn for almost 2 weeks without incident (kind of a bleak thought already, no?). When I went to look down lovingly at it and sing a little song to myself a la Enchanted about living in a progressive neighborhood, it was gone. At first I thought, am I a witch? Accio nachos. But nothing happened so I knew I hadn't somehow magically willed it to disappear by thinking about it. Then I wondered if perhaps some renegade bigoted squirrels ran off with it in an act of protest against my dog who subsequently loves to chase squirrels. However, there was no evidence pointing to this though I will continue to let her chase the squirrels just in case. So finally, I was forced to come to terms with my third option. Someone actually walked across my lawn, picked it up off its stand (thanks for leaving that in place, by the way. Saves me $2 on my re-order), and walked off with it. Maybe they took it to put it on their own lawn? That would be great. Someone stealing the sign isn't a huge deal. I actually originally ordered two just in case this happened and believe me I am making the next one way more difficult to walk off with because I am stubborn, determined and having someone take the sign only validates to me why I needed to have it in the first place. I know that having something removed from my lawn is small change in reality. Someone vandalized a transgender woman's car in Cheesman Park two weeks ago, swastikas were painted on an elementary school in Stapleton and I am sure many other threatening, violent and overt acts of oppression are occurring every day. My sign being stolen is far from the worst thing that is happening. It's not really in the same ballpark. The reason I am even mentioning it, however, is that it demonstrates the small, quiet acts that can go under the radar. Not only does this act create barriers for me in that I may have to order a new one (already did that), order cameras and find a sneaky Home Alone-style way to protect it, but it sends a message. That message says, "I do not agree with you and I will remove and silence your voice." That's not going to work for me anymore and I will urge all who can to say the same. Small dismissals, quiet acts completed in the dark and microaggressions normalize behavior that needs to be eradicated. By putting my sign back out, I am sending the message that I won't let someone else's intolerance stop me from pursuing equal rights and safety for everyone. It's only by openly and repeatedly pushing back against the messages that aim to separate and silence us can we make progress. It also may be worth putting a smaller, handwritten sign out that informs future thieves that, for every sign that is stolen I will order a new one and 100% of the profits go to the Black Lives Matter movement. So, if you really don't believe in the cause, thieves, best to leave my sign alone.

OK, on that note. I have some super incredible news. The tank tops are ready. THE TANK TOPS ARE READY! Here it is:

Isn't it beautiful? It's better in person. So the plan is, I opened an Etsy shop to "sell" them. They are priced at $19 so that $10 from every purchase can be donated to Planned Parenthood. If you live in Denver and don't want to pay the extra fees and for shipping, email me at theliberalb[at]gmail[dot]com or message me through Facebook or send an owl or however you want to reach out to figure that out. Either way, anything over the cost of printing the shirts will be donated to Planned Parenthood because access to safe, affordable health care is cool and important.  If you live outside of Denver, Etsy is the easiest option because it manages shipping. There is a limited amount for each size so order them now and get them in time to gift them for the holidays or wear them around your random intolerant relative this season. I owe a huge shout out to A Small Print Shop for being so rad to work with. I hope you enjoy them and also order them otherwise I will be spite-gifting many tank tops this year.